“All hands, stand by for jump exit in about, oh a couple of hours.” Unlike the Vanday, You have to be at your station but you can kind of lounge until something happens.
arrive
275-1105 Imperial October 13, 5628 Earth date.
You’ve been here before so I ain’t gonna repost the data.
Roughly fifteen days since you arrived in Ffudn. Yeah, all that took time.
From previously:
“Um, yeah. Remember when I said there was bad news and worse news? That was the bad news. This is the worse news. If you read the planet briefing, you’ll notice that this is an amber zone and that the government is balkanized. There is no uniform planetary government. It is divided into countries. The largest country is Rendova. It is part of a coalition with Marstal, Asiland and a couple of other countries. They have a kind of economic union. Well, its election season for Rendova. The secure cargo was electronic voting machines. It has been a biter election season and there was so much distrust, they imported the voting machine tech from off world. There are already riots breaking out and no one knows about this mishap yet. And, we have to land on this planet. The Captain and Glick are already on planet dealing with this. Insurance will cover it but reputation to the company, well, that’s going to be sticky.”
New stuff: The star port is its own neutral principality. Everyone respects that the star port is neutral ground. (supposedly) If one country or political block were to try and seize it, the rest would intervene. Providing they could.
Everyone can hear the bridge if they have their headset on.
“Captain, sensor contact! eighty thousand meters and closing. Bearing three five five mark zero one zero. “
“Captain, shouldn’t we contact in system control?”
“Not yet, but set it up, “book” says, they are 165.4. Set com to that and stand by. Any more info on that blip?”
“Hey Hamster, start charging up the lasers!”
“lasers online & charged. Power plant at 110%.
Knock em outta space!”
“Ah the contact looks like that crazy guy in the Sprite fighter that helped us out last time we were here. No idea who he is. I'm still tracking him but it will be a bit before we are in a decent communications range.”
“Contact arrival control. Maybe we can find out who he is. Meanwhile, you can stand down. Put the lasers on stand by if you would Hamilton.”
“Marastaan arrival, Marastaan arrival. This is free trader Galaxina inbound with a priority cargo. I say again, this is free trader Galaxina inbound with a priority cargo. Our course is one one niner mark zero zero two at point niner AUs distance at speed golf two over.”
“At this distance it will be four hours before we hear from them. Keep an eye on the sprite. I’m heading to the head. Hmm, you guys should train Hamster and whomever else you get to use the comm and scanners. The Gal is rigged so you can monitor the engines from here. But obviously you’d have to go back there if something came up. We’ll have to pass through two astroid fields so stay sharp. Estimated landing time is about 40 hours.” (which is pretty standard. You are just used to having the cargo come out to meet you instead of having to land)
Meanwhile, the Captain asks Sir Freddy to come to the bridge. Since he is a member of the OCC, he may be able to get priority landing. Especially considering your cargo.
Sir Freddy comes up and transmits a message to flight control. After a bit over four hours later you get a reply. (keep in mind the time lag. There really isn’t anything faster than light. So like today, messages take a while to get out and back.
“Free trader Galaxina, This is Marastaan arrival control. We are tracking your position at 265 mark two zero. Proceed on course zero seven two mark three five five. You have priority landing. An escort is on route to meet you. Ident scout ship one one five eight Valenzuela.”
“Hamster, can you come up to the bridge please?”
"OK on my way!"When you get there, Leoso and the Captain go over some basic stuff with you. You know the basic flight controls from simulator time with Anna. With the comm they are just showing you how to turn on and off and such. The sensors will take more time and in depth training to learn how to read it.
The captain says, “ Mr Evil, I’m taking a rest period. Call me if something comes up. Auto pilot is on so you can run a sim program for Hamster and let him have some experience. If you need to leave the bridge, use your judgement if you need me or not. Though, out in space, not much is going to happen. See Hamster, you are either bored out of your mind or scared out of your mind. Welcome to space.”
And with that he leaves for a snack and a nap. B "Most of that shit is automated. You only really work on take off and landing."
So, Evil shows Hamilton how to use the radio. Turn off, on, change frequencies etc. Each star port has its own call sign and radio frequencies. Arrival, departure, local air space control and ground control. Arrival and departure are pretty self explanatory. Local air space control guides traffic going through controlled air space. In as much as most ships do Vertical Take Off and Landing, GC mostly coordinated ground services. Fueling and what not. Though, there are ships that do glide in on occasion and they direct those to the proper areas and keep other craft from getting too close. The computer will bring up a navigation chart for each system with all the information on the various star ports. Keep in mind, a system may have several planets with star ports on them. There may be a research base on a moon, or the scout base will be on a smaller planet. The nav chart will list the highest level of star port first.
It’s rather simple to use the radio system. But it also includes some basic electronics work and repair. Some of which you already understand as you are an engineer after all.
OK. So, hell, no problem when Leoso says,”Gotta use the can. Be right back. You have the bridge.”
Seconds after Leoso leaves and closes the hatch, you hear the radio. “Free Trader Galaxina, free Trader Galaxina. This is sprite zero one, Blue Fairy, I say again, this is sprite zero one Blue fairy please set secondary frequency to one zero one dot six. I say again please set secondary frequency to one zero one dot six. This may take a bit I am a ways from you. Reply takes three zero minutes. Please respond over. ”
"sprite zero one, Blue Fairy. sprite zero one, Blue Fairy. This is Free Trader Galaxina. Repeat, This is Free Trader Galaxina. How can we help you? over.”
The whole exchange takes about an hour, thirty minutes to send, and another thirty for her reply.
“FT Galaxina, this is Sprite zero one, Blue Fairy. Hey, a scout ship is on the way to escort you in. But, it won’t get to you until about the second asteroid belt. (check your navigation map) I am looking to meet up with you about the first asteroid belt. I’ve been hired to help you out. Be aware, someone else has been hired to make sure you don’t make it in. And will probably be waiting just inside the first belt. If they were monitoring arrival control, they probably know you are in the system and where you are. But, I’m closer so they won’t catch any of this fast enough to make a difference. So, meet up with you in about an hour and then we’ll go in. Get yourselves to battle stations.“
Keep in mind, jump lets you travel faster than light around space. But, communications and sensors do not operate FTL. So there is a time lag on com and sensor. When you jump into a system, you can see where things are (or were depending on how far out you are) Whereas, someone already there, won’t know you are there for a while. For example, if you jumped into our solar system say, around Pluto, you would pick up a ship in orbit around earth right away. But, as far as you are concerned, that’s where it was five hours ago. Additionally, it would be five hours before that ship knew you were even there! So you have that much of a jump on it. As the two ships got closer to each other, the time lag would shrink.
Leoso is back in time to hear the reply. It’s recorded in the flight voice recorder anyway. (spaceship black box)
“So, we’ll let him sleep a bit, and then wake him up and give him the news. We’ve got about an hour before we hit the belt. Better go fire things up.”
"Right eeoo!" As Hamilton leaves the bridge and heads for engineering.
Everyone is patched into the comm system. Sir Freddy has gone up to the bridge. He can work comms. Two of the scout security detail know engineering- Kodash, and Ivan Goodofoson. They will act as damage control. Lin Jamabo, one of the other scouts will be on the bridge at the fire control station. There is a fixed forward laser gun. Normally the pilot operates it but it is much more effective with a dedicated gunner. Olton Soro, another scout is up in the turret.
Before all this gets going, The Captain says to you, “Think you can get one of the little gems ready in engineering? We may need one.”
As you tour the ship Captain Garson takes you aside and says, “This ship has a little something extra.” He shows you an access panel under the power plant console. “This is a military grade flare mine. Ordinarily, it functions as a flare to throw off missiles. But if you stick something in it, it becomes a mine. So, if you drop it behind you and say, a missile doesn’t hit you, a ship pursuing you may hit it and kaboom!! I got it from outside the empire so the legality of it is questionable in imperial space. But, I’d rather have had to deal with that then being blown to bits. Know what I mean? I’ll leave it on board unless you want to get rid of it. Its kind of a last ditch weapon and there are only three modules on board. The parts printer can’t make them as its a bit too much for it to handle and it can’t make the explosive components.”
Just as you enter the first asteroid field, Blue Fairy meets up with you. It’s a two person Sprite class fighter. Made for extended operations. Pilot-gunner, engineer-comm-sensor operator. Small cabin area with a bunk, “microwave”, toilet. Duration in these things is about a week or so.
Just as you meet up, a Class S scout ship pops up…
“Battle stations, Sir?”
“YUP! All hands, prepare for possible hostiles.”
put on my vacc suit and get to my station and get ready for boarders
So, you do get the bridge feed on your head set; consequently you can hear what’s going on.
Lin Jamabo, the scout at the sensor-fire control station says, “ I have contact with Blue Fairy. I’m also picking up something at two O’clock low at thirty thousand meters. Its hiding in asteroid debris. And another contact, really close. Can’t tell what it is but its at our six o’clock and ten thousand above.”
Right about then is when WHAM!!
’Shit! we are being fired upon. Hit to forward shield!”
Being a merchant ship, your shields are minimal. More for deflecting debris and small asteroids.
Fortunately, Hamilton is able to keep the shields up and reinforce them.
“It’s a scout ship. Triple turret. Lasers and missiles. She doesn’t have a lock on us but she took a pot shot with the lasers. Otherwise she’d have used missiles. She doesn't think that much of us it seems.”
“Lin, give this snarfer something to think about!”
"Scrub this sucker!"
“Hamster give me everything she’s got!!”
Hamster is able to increase power to 110% and overcharge the laser capacitors
Zap!!
ZAAAAAPPP!!
“MOTHER OF ZARQUAN!!”
“WHERE THE HELL DID THAT COME FROM?”
“Ship at our six o’clock has moved up and opened fire on our opponent!! I read her as two thousand tons, Dreamer class merchant. Transponder identifies her as the Sweet Memories…”
Took a couple of minor hits. Nothing you can’t fix. Between you, the fighter, and the big merchant, you guys threw a big smack down.
He is disabled. Message from Sweet Memories, “We’ll hold him for the authorities. Go on your way and safe trip.”
A couple of hours later, two IISS ships show up. One escorts you to the planet, the other continues to meet with the Sweet Memories.
as you enter the planet’s atmosphere, air craft from two directions come up to meet you. Four from one direction and six from another…
keep in mind, the Tech Level of this planet. You have a bunch of P-51 mustangs heading for you…
Actually, could be anything from an old prop plane to a V2 rocket with a nuclear war head.
"Crap! Battlestations!"
“Incoming. One of the aircraft has launched a rocket. Tracking… turret two, can you shoot it down?”
“I’m tracking. This is going to be close…”
Turret fires and hits it! It detonates close enough that the ship buffets a bit.
see what i can do about the ship were we damaged?
Everything seems ok but a war head at that tech level shouldn’t have that sort of effect…
so they’re getting help from someone
isn’t there a prime directive or something?
probably not now that I think of it
Yes and no. Free trade is encouraged. And it is not uncommon for lower tech agricultural worlds to trade items with higher tech industrial worlds. Works out for both. But, in a conflict, the Imperial Rules of War kick in. Also, the Imperial Government won't intervene as this is an internal planetary matter. Only when weapons of mass destruction or something that could be widely disruptive does the Empire get directly involved in the affairs of one of its members.
Meanwhile, there is a dog fight going on…
There was a quick drop in power. A down spike if you will but
You brought it under control. It was like an EMP burst from the war head.
Your escort drives the other planes off. You are going to have to do a hull inspection when you land.
Once you land, you are soon met by a military delegation. Mr. Evil, Sir Freddy and the scouts will escort the equipment to its final destination. via convoy. He does ask that you come along as well. ‘Hey, Hamster is good with a gun. Can I bring him along as back up?”
Sir Freddy speaks to the delegation and after a bit of chatting and paperwork, the three of you have fire arm licenses that basically deputizes you for the duration of this mission to carry and if necessary, use deadly force.
As you can see, there is a cordon of security vehicles near your ship as the trucks unload it.
The trip is roughly 100 KM and should take only two hours.
But already, there is a sizable presence outside the spaceport.
BTW, it should be more of a 1950’s style of vehicles but this is all I had.
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